Scripted Life

I was born in Lansdale Pennsylvania, a small town outside of Philadelphia in 1980. Growing up my mother would read me the classic fairy tales of The Grimm Brothers and my mind would come alive with images of a magical world. Not only was I impacted by the stories she told, but also by her profound approach on storytelling. When I entered middle school, I started to get into poetry and began writing my own work through high school. Along with stories and poetry, I also showed an interest in movies and filmmaking. I was always fascinated with the creation of making images on film from stories. With my enthusiasm for writing and filmmaking, I attended the University of Pittsburgh as a film studies/writing student in 1998. Through the University I studied the philosophy of filmmaking and English Literature. I also attended Pittsburgh Filmmakers, which is a film school connected with the University. I learned all aspects of film and video from 8mm film to editing on Final Cut Pro. For my final film project from Pittsburgh Filmmakers, I converted a short story I wrote in high school into a screenplay and directed, entitled ‘Deadline’. It’s a classic film noir premise with a great femme fatale character. I graduated with a degree in Film Studies and English Literature and a certificate from film school. After college, I moved to Indianapolis and worked on a documentary as a camera operator. I began writing my story ‘Thesis’ and continued to work on other various film projects. In 2006, I moved to Chicago to expand my horizon and infiltrate myself in a bigger and better artistic city. I began writing a short screenplay entitled ‘Monday Morning’, an extra ordinary story of love and the little things we take for granted in relationships. I directed and produced the film in 2007 and it was completed in the spring of 2008. It premiered at Chicago International Reel Shorts Festival in September of 2008. It was also shown at The Naperville International Film Festival. It is available to watch on my IMDB page, as well as, Vimeo and YouTube. In the summer of 2008 I directed and produced a documentary on the Avon Walk for breast cancer in Chicago titled ‘Why We Walk’. In 2009 I wrote, directed, and produced my first feature length film titled "The One True Thing'. The story of a man trying to rediscover his love for writing while on a weekend getaway with his close college friends. ‘Last Scene’ is my most recent project that I starting writing this past spring. The story follows a screenwriter as he tries to finish his latest screenplay. As he struggles with coming up with an ideal ending, his surroundings begin to morph into his thoughts. The idea came from my many years of having similar experiences while writing my stories. I also wanted to go back to my roots of Film Noir. I’ve always been a huge fan of that film era and wanted to bring those theme elements back into this story. As I continue to write stories here in Chicago, the fairy tales from my childhood continue to influence my inspirational approach to storytelling while applying human emotions that exist everyday in the lives of many.